CPP observes one-week for late Comrade Akrofi

The Convention Peoples Party (CPP) in conjunction with the family of the late Mr. Hayford Akrofi will hold a one week observation in honour of the former CPP stalwart who was murdered a week ago.

The programme will be held at the CPP Headquarters at Asylum Down in Accra on Monday 30th June at 10am.

All well-wishers and sympathisers are welcome to pay tribute to the illustrious son of Ghana whose life was cut short by an unknown assailant at his residence at Ofankor on Monday, 23rd June.

He died at the age of 64 and is survived by four children.

Mr. Hayford Akrofi was an architect and Vice-Chairman of the UK branch of the CPP, who returned from the UK recently to contribute to the development of his country.

A Book of condolence has been opened at the CPP party headquarters.


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SOURCE:GHANAWEB

Cable theft worsens load­-shedding in Kumasi

Some suspected thieves last Wednesday stole large electricity cables at the main Kumasi Substation of the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG), and this plunged half of the metropolis into darkness.

The situation compelled the ECG to undertake an unscheduled emergency load-shedding exercise in Kumasi. Electricity has since been restored.

The thieves, who probably had deep knowledge of and technical expertise in electrical work, used a copper wire to create contact for two of the three lines on the pole, resulting in total blackout, and seized the opportunity to cut both hanging and underground cables.

Each of the three cables which were stolen from the substation at the Abinkyi Market area, behind the Light House Chapel, measured 12 meters.

Briefing the Daily Graphic, the Ashanti Regional Engineer of the ECG, Mr. Emmanuel Aldnie, said around 12.30 a.m. last Wednesday, the line tripped, culminating in unscheduled power cuts.

He said initially it was presumed to be a fault, until it was detected that thieves had cut some of the hanging and the underground cables.

He appealed to the public to help the security agencies or the ECG with information on the whereabouts of those who orchestrated that crime.







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SOURCE:GHANAWEB

I have no regret for my action- Muntari

Ghanaian midfielder Sulley Muntari has officially maintained that he has no regret for his action which led to his indefinite suspension from camp last Wednesday.

According to the AC Milan player, he is not worried over his cantankerous attitude which triggered an alleged slapping of Moses Parker, a team official in the face – and threatening other members of the coaching staff with a broken bottle.

The player made these bizarre remarks when he wrote on his Instagram wall saying "From the bottom of my heart I don't give a f@#k".

Meanwhile, some Ghanaians including his Godfather Alhaji Karim Grusah have condemned Sulley Muntari for his indiscipline act.

They maintained that the player should not be invited to play for the national team again to set a precedent for future players.


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SOURCE;GHANAWEB & INFOGHANA

7 Simple Things To Do To Differentiate Yourself and Build a Standout Career

According to the International Labor Organization, the global jobs gap is likely to rise to 75 million by 2018 unless there is a significant surge in employment market growth.

This is despite reported labor market growth in the U.S. and UK, however, as developed economies continue to struggle with social, political and financial upheaval.

While this is a negative development, it is worth noting that even a prosperous job market creates unique challenges for job-seekers and individuals who are looking to progress their careers. More specifically, it creates a more crowded and competitive employment market, as a growing number of people resume their search for work and apply for a disproportionate ratio of jobs.

How to Stand Out From the Crowd in the Contemporary Job Market

With this in mind, what simple steps can you take to distinguish yourself from the crowd while establishing a progressive career? Consider the following:

1. Open your Mind to New Career Opportunities

Technological advancement has changed the nature of the modern workplace, while also sounding the death knell for traditional industries such as print media and analogue television. Anyone who is experienced in these industries must therefore develop an open mind if they are to progress, as they consider new opportunities in similar but more progressive market sectors. Why this may force you to acquire some new skills and qualifications, it will enable you to evolve your career and drive it forward from austerity.

2. Try New Things and Embrace the Unknown

While embracing new career opportunities in related and progressive industries will stand you in good stead, you should take this philosophy further and look to sample a series of new skills and experiences as you consider your future. This will encourage you think outside of your existing capabilities, as your future employment may lie in an industry that has little or no connection to your previous experience of the workplace. By showcasing a willingness to learn brand new skills and try different things, you can take your career in a direction that you never thought was possible.

3. Be Proactive Not Reactive in the Marketplace

Whether looking to develop an existing career or start a new one from scratch, you cannot hope to progress unless you adopt a proactive approach to networking, sourcing opportunities and making applications. Those with a reactive mind-set are ill-equipped to thrive in a competitive market, as they will lose ground to their rivals and fail to stand-out as keen or motivated candidates for work. So even if it goes against your nature, consider being tenacious in your approach and changing your behavior with regards to pursuing opportunities.

4. Showcase your Key Personal Attributes

When applying for a new job, it is likely that you and your rival candidates will share many of the same skills and academic qualifications. In this instance, it is often your experience and personal attributes that will distinguish you from the crowd, so you must present these clearly and confidently to potential employers. In essence, these are your unique selling points as an individual candidate, and your ability to market them effectively will determine whether or not you can secure long-term security and the standout career of your dreams.

5. Strive to Cultivate Strong Working Relationships

By sharing your most positive personal attributes in a professional context, you are also laying the foundations for strong working relationships with your employers. The same principle applies when networking with recruiters and industry contacts, despite the prominence of social media and remote communication it is important to remember that the employment market remains an interpersonal environment that is driven by face-to-face interaction. So by presenting your qualities and communicating openly, you can cultivate strong professional relationships that help you to maximize your career.

6. Remember the Value of Hard Work

In an age of digital communication, e-recruitment and online working processes, it is easy to believe that technology is the key player in the contemporary employment market. While it is undoubtedly influential, however, it is important not to underestimate the value of hard work and how this impacts positively on your chances of achieving multiple career goals. Simply by showcasing a willingness to go above and beyond the call of duty and work outside of your contracted hours where necessary, you can distinguish yourself in the eyes of employers and elevate your career to a higher level.

7. Remain Focused on Clearly Defined Career Goals

Historically, individuals always could rely on long-term employment opportunities once they had left education and ventured out into the world of work. This is no longer the case, however, which means that today’s generation of workers must be adaptable and willing to change positions if they are to achieve their career goals.

While your job title, location and level of remuneration may be changeable, however, it is important to retain clearly-defined, long-term career goals that enable you to focus as you look to progress. This will help you to cope with your constantly changing circumstances and the necessary periods of transition.

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source;lifehack.org

Asamoah Gyan must return to Europe - Van Nistelrooy

The ex-Manchester United goal poacher is in awe of Gyan's talent but has questioned why he is wasting his prowess in a less fancied football region 

Netherlands legend Ruud van Nistelrooy has questioned Asamoah Gyan's decision to play in the UAE instead of Europe, despite his talent.

He said the striker is throwing away his football skills in the Gulf Region.

“Why is Gyan playing in the UAE? I don’t know what he is doing there. He should be playing with a top side in Europe. He had a tremendous game [against Germany],” Van Nistelrooy said on ESPN.

The 28-year-old striker became the record signing player for Sunderland in 2010 costing them £13 million, but decided to join Al Ain a year later with a speculated loan fee of £6 million but later signed a permanent
deal with the Bosses after a successful season.

Gyan has been a major threat to opposing defenders in UAE, scoring 45 goals in all competitions [42 games] in the just ended season.

He has won the Pro League goal scorers accolade on three consecutive seasons and is currently leading the top scorer chart in this season’s Asian Champions League, scoring eight goals for the Bosses.

Gyan is the first African player to score in three consecutive World Cup finals and holds the record of most goals by an African at the World Cup with Cameroonian legend Roger Milla.

He is the youngest player to score for Ghana and currently holds the all-time goal scorers record for the west Africans after netting 40 times in 80 games.

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SOURCE;GOAL.COM

12 Useful Windows Programs You’ll Want to Download

We’ve come a long way since the DOS days of doing all of our computer tasks manually.

Nowadays, there’s even an Iphone app that sorts our socks for us. So it goes without saying that there are plenty of useful Windows programs- none of
which sort your socks.

Whether you’re a windows veteran or a disgruntled Mac convert, you’ll want to take advantage of the following free and useful Windows programs.

If you’re looking for something to help with organization, productivity, or simply keeping track of things, try these out.

1. Avast!: for the infected

No, I’m not calling you a zombie. However, if you’re computer is badly infected with viruses, it probably won’t be long before its performance starts going south. Avast is a free antivirus and anti-spyware program that will run on Windows 7, 8, Vista, and XP.

2. Comodo Backup: for the losers

Just kidding, you’re not a loser. However, if you lose things often, you may want to think about keeping important files and media in storage. Comodo is like an online hard drive, offering 10 GB of space for free or 100 GB for $7.99 per month. The program runs on Windows systems as old as 2003.

3. WinDirStat

True or false: You have too much stuff running at once and your computer hates you. You’ll be able to find out with WinDirStat, a program that allows you to view your disk usage and clean things up if necessary. You’ll be able to see statistics as well as a visual display of your file types. Bonus points: cool colors.

4. Lastpass: for the forgetful

We’ve all needed Lastpass at one point or another. The program recalls your important passwords by creating browser extensions for Internet Explorer, Firefox, Chrome, Safari, and Opera. Never sit dumbfounded in front of an account login again!

5. Rainmeter: for the wallpaper junkie

Rainmeter is the perfect way to up the aesthetic value of your desktop and organize it at the same time. Thousands of skins are available like the one below. The program allows you to customize your desktop with memory and battery power, email, RSS feeds, weather forecasts, or whatever else you want to keep track of. Plus, they’re fun to build.

6. Defraggler: for the clean freak

I don’t know about you, but just the idea of having “fragments” scattered around my hard drive gives me the immediate urge to clean. Defraggler is your virtual spring cleaning program, sequencing “blocks” of content and freeing up space. It’s especially good to try if your computer has been running slow. Unlike most defragmentation programs, this one allows you to choose specific files instead of the whole drive. Conveniently, you can also schedule the program to run when you’re not at the computer.

7. Ultimate Windows Tweaker: for the customizer

This program will run on Windows 7, 8, XP and Vista, enabling you to “tweak” just about every feature you can imagine. Security, network, display, and other options allow you to set your computer up in the exact way you want it. This is great for those little annoyances you wish you could edit.

8. Breevy: for the timesaver

Breevy is certainly the product of a fast-paced, technological age. No longer do you have to type out full words and phrases that you use often. Just save an abbreviation in Breevy, and from then on you can type the abbreviation to make the full word or phrase appear. It also comes with a typo corrector and syncs with TextExpander (a similar program) via Dropbox.

9. CCleaner: for the hoarder

Ccleaner is similar to Defraggler in cleaning and speeding up your computer. However CCleaner wipes out your Browser’s temporary files, history, cookies, super cookies, and autocomplete form history. Think of CCleaner as the poor guys who have to clean out a hoarder’s house. Think of Defraggler as the interior designers who go in afterwards and trying to make sense of what’s left.

10. XBMC: for the media junkie

XBMC is home theater software that allows you to view movies, shows, and pictures. You can also listen to music, play DVDs, and download an XBMC remote control on your Iphone. The program is open source with a 10 foot user interface (yea, get the popcorn ready). As of recently, you can even watch Netflix and download tons of other addons like weather forecasts, skins, and webscrapers.

11. Virtualbox

Virtualbox is an open source program that enables you to run two operating systems at once. If you’re wondering why on earth you’d need to do that, you’re probably just not nerd enough. It’s useful for testing out new upgrades before installation, playing games, or running programs that are incompatible with your host system. With Virtualbox, you can use Windows as the host or guest system. There’s also a feature called Snapshots that allows you to revert back to a previously saved state.

12. Unlocker

Windows sometimes decides to be incredibly frustrating and not allow you to delete a file. It will often say that the file is being used by an open program, but you might have no idea which one. Unlocker is the solution. Download Unlocker, right click those files, and select “Unlock” to get rid of them. That’s it!



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SOURCE;LIFEHACK.ORG

The Secret to Recovering From a Negative Customer Review

Businesses aren’t perfect.

A slipup from a vendor, a shipment gone awry and an inevitable technical error all damage a brand’s reputation. In these situations, customers have the right to be brutal and unforgiving.

Consequently, a negative review can pop up anywhere and haunt a company forever.

Though it's impossible to control what upset customers may say, companies' reaction to the criticism can be tempered.

Related: How to Handle Negative Online Reviews

In its support center for businesses, Yelp offers a helpful document that warns, “contacting reviewers should be approached with care; internet messaging is a blunt tool and sometimes good intentions come across badly.”

Yelp also adds three important points worth remembering:

"1.Your reviewers are your paying customers.

2. Your reviewers are human beings with (sometimes unpredictable) feelings and sensitivities.

3. Your reviewers are vocal and opinionated (otherwise they would not be writing reviews!)."

Of course, this advice can be applied to dealing with negative reviews anywhere on the web, not only on

Yelp.

Avoid getting into a war of words and give disappointed customers an authentic, empathetic and nonconfrontational response. If you are lucky, you might even earn their respect and loyalty.

Below are four tips to remember in order to bounce back from a negative review:

Related: Got a Bad Yelp Review? Here's What to Do

1. Do not hide from your mistakes. Most companies, when hit with harsh feedback, will copy and paste a canned response, then proceed to bury the review deep in Google’s search results. Others will sulk in the shadows, hoping the PR nightmare may eventually blow over.

Unfortunately, neither approach works for the long term. The critic will feel highly undervalued and smart shoppers will always be thorough in their research. Make it a point to acknowledge your failure and to do whatever it takes to make it right instead of making it go away.

Related: How Entrepreneurs Can Cope With Rejection Online

2. Focus on solutions, not excuses. Set your ego aside and make amends by taking responsibility for a user’s poor experience, even if you aren’t truly at fault. Offer a generous apology, which may include a full or partial refund, free gifts and expedited shipping. Then, go the extra mile and provide an outline for an action plan that will permanently fix the root cause of the problem.

For example, you may describe how you will work closer with the quality assurance team, retrain customer service representatives or replace unreliable vendors. This demonstrates that you learned something from the experience and took action so it may never happen again.

Related: Why Crowdsourcing Is the Answer to Business-Software Reviews

3. Recruit consumers' help. Angry customers are not intentionally malicious. In almost all cases, they simply want to be heard and to be treated with dignity and respect. Therefore, invite them to help you build a better business.

Have your clients contribute their ideas for how exactly you can improve your offerings so they may get the most value out of your product and so no one else will feel cheated the way they did. Just remember to do more than listen; deliver on any agreeable suggestions and keep all promises.

4. Work with a clear conscience. After operating in the best interests of your customer and your brand, keep your head held high. There is no reason to feel burdened with a sense of overwhelming guilt or shame that affects morale and performance. At some point, you have to move on and continue delighting more customers.

As your business grows, there will always be at least one annoyed and vocal customer. To ensure that you keep your brand’s reputation intact and that you sleep well at night, be sure to honor every complaint that comes in with a generous response that provides a short-term fix (to win back the customer) and a long-term solution (to earn trust and prevent the issue from happening again).
Share with us any ways of recovering from a Negative Customer Review

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SOURCE;ENTREPRENEUR.COM